UK demands answers after MP denied entry to Hong Kong

British Member of Parliament (MP) for Bath, Liberal Democrat Wera Hobhouse | FILE PHOTO/Agence France-Presse

LONDON — British Foreign Secretary David Lammy on Sunday said he was deeply concerned after a UK lawmaker was denied entry to Hong Kong, and said he would be urgently raising the issue with the Chinese authorities.

Wera Hobhouse claimed she was the first British MP to be refused entry on arrival in Hong Kong since the former British colony was handed over to China in 1997.

Hobhouse is a member of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China.

READ: UK: Hong Kong law a ‘clear violation’ of China’s obligations

“IPAC unites lawmakers worldwide, promoting democracy and addressing threats to the rules-based and human rights systems posed by the rise of China,” the group says on its website.

The Sunday Times newspaper said Hobhouse, 65, flew to Hong Kong on Thursday on a personal trip to visit her newborn grandson.

It said she had her passport confiscated, was asked about her job and the purpose of her visit, had her luggage searched and was then taken to the boarding gate.

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“When I was given the decision my voice was shaking and I was just saying: ‘Why, please explain to me?’,” the British weekly quoted her as saying.

Hobhouse said on Bluesky: “I am the first MP to be refused entry on arrival to Hong Kong since 1997.

“Authorities gave me no explanation for this cruel and upsetting blow. I hope the foreign secretary will recognize that this is an insult to all parliamentarians and seek answers.”

AFP has contacted the Hong Kong government for comment.

‘Unjustified restrictions’

It comes a week after two British MPs from the governing Labour Party were blocked from entering Israel and deported.

Hobhouse has been a member of parliament for the smaller opposition Liberal Democrats since 2017.

“It is deeply concerning to hear that an MP on a personal trip has been refused entry to Hong Kong,” Lammy said.

“We will urgently raise this with the authorities in Hong Kong and Beijing to demand an explanation.

“As I made clear earlier this week, it would be unacceptable for an MP to be denied entry for simply expressing their views as a parliamentarian.

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“Unjustified restrictions on freedom of movement can only serve to further undermine Hong Kong’s international reputation.”

It comes as Hong Kong’s Democratic Party, once the city’s stalwart opposition force but now seatless, is preparing to dissolve as some of its veterans languish in jail.

The remaining members of the city’s main democracy party will meet on Sunday to discuss and possibly vote on shutting down, following procedures that began in February.

The party and its campaign for freer elections have withered under Beijing’s years-long national security crackdown.

After 2019 protests paralyzed the financial hub, Beijing moved to further restrict elections and imprison democracy campaigners.